“Lady Qing, you have been summoned by the Empress.”

Min’s voice brought them out of their conversation.

Ah. They were here.

She looked at Ah-Liu. “You did good work, Ah-Liu. Just a bit more.”

She turned to Min. “Manu should be in his lesson with Chen Zhongqing now. Go with Su and tell Lian to bring them both to Tianfenggong. And then inform Chen Yuming as well.

She then turned to Ah-Liu. “And you, take those damned clothes and follow us.”

Ah-Liu nodded in answer.

“Good.”

Samaya checked herself once to see that she had what she needed before she walked out to see the Empress’s Eunuch - what was his name again? - as well as a few Palace guards standing behind him. There was a stern frown on his face as he spoke.

“Virtuous Lady Qing! You have been summoned to the Inner court by the Empress for trial. Do not resist! Should you resist, we shall use force against you! Remember, your actions will now bear heavily on your child and servants.”

Samaya smiled and raised her hands in a gesture of surrender. “Peace, Eunuch. I will go as commanded.” She stepped forward and put a hand on the eunuch’s shoulder, the smile on her face freezing cold. “So please do stop threatening my son.”

With that, she walked past him and the rest of the guards. When the rest of the maids made to follow her, she raised a hand to stop them.

“Stay here.”

She did not need these third parties following her. That would make things more troublesome.

The Inner Court was a large Hall attached to Tianfenggong, similar to the Hall where the Emperor held his Court, but smaller. This Court apparently convened when there were important Harem matters to be discussed - such as selection of concubines and Inner Palace Banquets - and when a concubine or consort committed offence. Except for the big offences like treason or assassination, the concubines were usually tried by the Empress herself. The Emperor would be present at times, of course, but most of the time, the final verdict was in the hands of the Empress.

The news of her being called for trial must have spread by now. And the crowd that was hastily gathering at the Tianfenggong confirmed that. Fu Caiyi arrived at the same time that she did. A worried frown was evident on her face. There were a few who took concerned and curious glances at her - Ren Siyun being one of them.

Fu Caiyi made to approach her but Samaya quickly shook her head at her. There were far more gleeful and malicious eyes on her than concerned ones. Anyone who tried to associate with her right now would probably be targeted later on. Except for that minuscule interaction, Samaya seemed to ignore her surroundings as she walked inside. The Eunuch led her to a path that deviated from her usual one, going toward the left wing of Tianfenggong. A Hall larger than Fore Hall itself came into view. She had seen this building a few times from afar when they were allowed to roam the back gardens but she had never quite realized how big and majestic it was.

The building sat on a flight of marble stairs. Pillars carved with golden Phoenixes stood on both sides of the entrance, and there was a beautiful Plaque made of Jade overhead. It read “Phoenix Hall”.

Ah.

She had forgotten that this world equated the Emperor to the Dragon and the Empress to the Phoenix. It was believed that only with their union would the world be at peace. Bunch of bullshit, in Samaya’s opinion. If that were true, there would be no need or desire to mess around with concubines. Not to mention, from what she knew of this world’s history, there were quite a few Emperors who were the children of concubines, including the Founder of this Dynasty - the Huang Dynasty.

It was funny how much they preached stuff like this only to thrive off of stomping all over it.

She sighed softly and stepped inside. There were still other concubines coming in. This place was similar to the Outer Court - where the Emperor held court. There was a raised dais, with one large seat there. It was empty for now. Which meant, the Empress had not yet come. But there were no other seats. Which meant, the rest of the concubines would have to remain standing for now. Now that she thought about it, he had seen those ministers standing too. Damn, did those ministers attend court and stay standing the whole time? If so, she had to admire that. No wonder they were so cranky all the time.

Samaya heard a lot of taunts and barbs around her, especially from the likes of Liao Huimei and Han Wanyi, about how “the peasant upstart is finally going to get what she deserves”. Samaya let the comments and looks roll off herself. Mostly.

When her eyes fell on Kang Yuxin, the familiar rage burned in her veins. She had to grit her teeth and clench her fists. It was all she could do to keep herself calm, reminding herself that this was no time to go off. She had to wait, she needed the stage to be set.

Kang Yuxin definitely felt her glare. She tilted her head toward Samaya and allowed herself a little smirk before approaching. Samaya asked whatever higher power there was for strength so she would not punch this thrice damned woman in the face.

“You have found yourself in quite a bind, Lady Qing.”

Samaya merely raised an eyebrow, not speaking. She did not trust herself not to cuss her out right now.

“I do hope that you are not thinking you can get out of this. There are severe punishments for concubines who not only overstep their boundaries but also torment the helpless.”

Samaya could not help but scoff. Oh, the irony of it.

The woman leaned in. “You should have just let the lessons continue. Senior Palace Attendant Li was doing that little rat a favour by taking precious time to teach him.”

No, Samaya, you cannot strangle her.

Samaya did not bother smiling. Instead, she put a hand on the woman’s shoulder. “You are right,” she whispered. “I am in quite a bind. But whether these bindings become the downfall of me or the noose around someone else’s neck,” she gently grazed her thumb over the side of the woman’s throat, over her pulse, “remains to be seen.”

Kang Yuxin definitely did not like that threat. Face red with anger, she opened her mouth. But whatever she wanted to say was lost the moment the guards announced loudly, “The Empress arrives! The Imperial Consort arrives!”

Everyone immediately cleared the way, before they got down on their knees and kowtowed. Samaya was a tad later than others. But she had to follow the rules right now if she wanted to get her way later.

She heard the slow, steady sound of footsteps as the Empress walked up the stairs, probably supported by maids, and sat on the throne.

“Arise!” She called.

They stood, their heads bowed. It was a wonder the people of this time did not get a hump on the back with all the bowing they did.

“Today, We are here to adjudge a serious offence committed by one of the concubines. Harmony in the Imperial Harem is a must for the stability of our nation, and to disrupt the harmony, that too in such a barbaric way is a heinous crime. Today, We are here to deliver justice!”

Oh, she was using the Royal We. She did not usually use that. She must be doing so in order to show her authority. Or was it because she was only allowed to do so in formal matters such as this?

Well, this woman could definitely have run for President back home.

“Bring the victim!”

Samaya finally looked up to see that the Senior Palace Attendant was being escorted by Eunuchs, who were gently holding her arms. As soon as she got in a respectable distance of the dais, the Eunuchs let go and she dropped to the ground, bowing her head quietly and trembling.

Hm… Samaya was half sure that half of that was an act. She knew how the woman trembled when she was scared. This was not it. She was putting up an act right now. She probably felt safe now that she was in front of a crowd and also had her backers here. Samaya held back a chuckle. It seemed she would have to once again give her a reason to be so fucking scared.

“Lady Qing, step forward by yourself!” The Empress commanded. “Or I shall have the guards bring you forward and make you kneel!”

Samaya sighed softly and stepped forward without a word. Once she got to the spot beside the Attendant, she knelt on the ground and bowed as well, not saying a word.

Silence.

She could feel the gazes on her, boring into her skull.

The Empress probably wanted to see if she would give in and start confessing. She did not. She kept her head bowed, her demeanour still and calm, and did not speak a word.

After a few moments, the Empress spoke again. “Attendant Yu, state your grievances!”

And then … started the drama.

The woman broke down, sobbing and bowing her head so low that she was almost touching the floor. “Your Majesty, this slave has been wronged. You must render justice!”

“Tell Us what happened.”

The woman took a visibly deep breath before straightening and starting to speak.

“I went to conduct the Prince’s lessons today as I do usually, But today, the Prince was not there. Instead, Lady Qing was waiting for me inside. She then said she disagreed with my method of discipline and accused me of harming the Prince! Your Majesty, this servant would never dare to harm the Imperial Prince! I said so! I tried to explain that I was only disciplining the Prince in order to teach him properly and help him become outstanding in everything he does! But she did not allow me to defend myself and started hurting me! Your Majesty, you can see for yourself. Lady Qing broke all my fingers and then held my head under water until I could not breathe! She has hurt me so severely for no reason other than doing my duties! Your Majesty, justice is in your hands!”

Samaya held back another snort. What a nice, dramatic story. And if she thought about it superficially, the summary of it was actually quite accurate. If they did not go into the details of what she said, because apparently saying “I am attempting to make that rat presentable as a human so that the Emperor won’t be embarrassed’ equated to “disciplining the Prince in order to teach him properly and help him become outstanding in everything he does.”

“Do you have anything to say, Lady Qing? Do you admit your offense?”

Oh, it was already decided that she committed the offense, was it? Well, too bad.

“I admit nothing, Your Majesty.”

“How impudent! You must think Us a blind fool! Do you think We do not see the injuries on Attendant Yu’s body?”

She shook her head. “No, Your Majesty. You misunderstood. I never said I did not break her bones. I only mean that I committed no offense.”

“You still dare say that after admitting you have hurt the Attendant so severely?”

“Your Majesty … since when is protecting one’s child an offense?” She looked down at the bump on the woman’s belly. “You are to become a mother soon, Your Majesty.” She looked around, her eyes falling on each of the mothers in the harem. “Lady Fu, Lady Hou, Consort Song, you are mothers as well. Are you telling me that you would not kill to protect your children?”

She turned back to the Empress. “I was protecting my child from the woman who was hurting him and meted out punishment for doing so. I did nothing wrong.”

“Impudent!’ The Imperial Consort, who was standing the closest to the dais spoke up. “Even if there was such an offense, a mere Noble Lady has no right to punish servants that are not hers, especially not a Senior Palace Attendant associated with another woman of the Harem!”

“Oh?” Samaya tilted her head at the woman, raising an eyebrow in askance. “Would that woman be you?” She asked, despite knowing the answer. She liked seeing her flustered, albeit only slightly.

“We are not here to answer your questions, Lady Qing.” The Empress’s voice pulled her attention back. “We are here to punish you for your offense. And since you have no repentance, the punishment shall be severe!”

“Your Majesty,” she tilted her head. “You have already decided that I am the culprit. Without even trying to investigate which of us is telling the truth. I can prove that I am telling the truth.”

The Empress scoffed. “What is there to investigate? The truth is in front of everyone to see! You have harmed a Senior Palace Attendant severely and disproportionately for a perceived crime! You had no authority to do so. Punishment is the natural consequence of such actions.”

There were murmurs of agreement rippling through the crowd.

It was no use. Everyone was so into this drama, everyone wanted to see the peasant plucked off from the streets punished. Especially the Empress, who was the most threatened by her and her son’s arrival.

She sighed softly, finally doing what she had planned to do from the beginning.

“I seek the Emperor’s Appeal.”

Emperor’s Appeal. It was a right every official concubine and consort had, whether she was ranked or not. This appeal allowed the concubine to seek remedy from the Emperor if they thought that the trial against them or the Empress’s decision was unjust to them. Once invoked, it was mandatory for the Emperor to be informed, and the Emperor would listen to the appeal only once. He could investigate, dismiss or issue a verdict right away. His word was final.

The problem was, not many dared to invoke this Appeal. They did not dare to disturb the Emperor for “trivial Harem matters”, or so Lian had said when she had been explaining it to Samaya. And of course, if they did, they would fall out of the favor of the Empress and never get back in there again. So, rarely anyone invoked it. The last time it was invoked was during the last Emperor’s reign, by the Imperial Consort of the time, who was at the time more favored than the Empress herself.

The shocked gasps from the crowd clearly indicated that none of them expected this.

“Emperor’s Appeal.” The Empress spoke and the crowd quietened. “Do you believe the Emperor will save you from this?”

“Not quite,” Samaya replied. “But I do believe His Majesty will listen.”

The Empress stared coldly at her before scoffing. She clearly did not want to, but Imperial rules dictated that the Emperor must be informed of an Emperor’s Appeal.

“We suppose we will be here for a while. Eunuch Lang, go and inform His Majesty-”

“No need.” A cold, familiar voice interrupted the Empress.

“The Emperor arrives!”

---